Maharashtra Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis.
Credit: PTI File Photo
Mumbai: Maharashtra deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Thursday pooh-poohed the Congress' plan to come out with a `guarantee card' ahead of the state assembly elections, and said the ploy failed in Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh.
Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi would be releasing a 'guarantee card' containing the party's election promises, state Congress leaders have said.
"Rahul Gandhi's guarantee card did not help Congress retain power in Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh," Fadnavis told reporters here.
"He should also explain why the guarantee card is not being implemented in Telangana and Himachal Pradesh, as promised. It will fail here too," the BJP leader added.
On the ruling BJP-Shiv Sena-NCP 'Mahayuti' alliance's strategy for dealing with rebels who have filed nominations against official candidates, Fadnavis said alliance leaders including NCP chief Ajit Pawar had a meeting at Chief Minister Eknath Shinde's residence on the issue.
"We have resolved all the issues, and you will see many rebels withdrawing their nominations by November 4," the BJP leader said, adding that they will hold discussions with the rebels and deal with their grievances.
November 4 is the last date of withdrawal while the elections will be held on November 20.
"Nominations submitted by the `Mahayuti' candidates have cleared the scrutiny phase. We will start our campaign with full vigour from November 5," Fadnavis said.
Asked about city BJP leader and former MP Gopal Shetty who is contesting as an independent from Borivali assembly constituency, Fadnavis said Shetty is a loyal and honest party worker who is "assertive" at times. "We are trying to persuade him (to withdraw)," he added.
As to whether he would be willing to induct controversial NCP leader Nawab Malik in the next government if the Mahayuti retained power, Fadnavis said, "Our party is not even going to campaign for Malik, so there is no question of inducting him as a minister. Our party is going to campaign for the Shiv Sena candidate who is contesting against Malik."
Malik is the official candidate of the Ajit Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party from Mankhurd-Shivajinagar in Mumbai which could witness a friendly fight between two allies.
Assembly Elections 2024 | The Maharashtra Assembly polls will take place against the backdrop of a fractured political landscape in the western state where the Shiv Sena and NCP will be going up against the Uddhav Thackeray and Sharad Pawar factions, even as the BJP and Congress try to make their mark. Meanwhile, in Jharkhand, the JMM faces a new challenge after Hemant Soren's recent arrest and Champai, a longstanding party member, joining the BJP. The Haryana election resulted in a shock loss for Congress, which was looking to galvanize on the Lok Sabha poll performance, while J&K also saw the grand old party eventually stepping away from the cabinet, with Omar Abdullah's JKNC forming government. It remains to be seen if the upcoming polls help BJP cement its position further or provide a fillip to I.N.D.I.A. Check live updates and track the latest coverage, live news, in-depth opinions, and analyses only on Deccan Herald.
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